Cooling Lemonade is a traditional British recipe, based on Alexis Soyer's recipe of 1849, for a classic drink made by infusing figs, lemon peel and lemon pulp in water before strainign and sweetening with honey. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Cooling Lemonade.
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This is a traditional British recipe redacted from Alexis Soyer's 1849 volume The modern Housewife or Ménagère, a classic Victorian cookbook.
Original Recipe
102. COOLING LEMONADE.—Put a quart of water in a stewpan to boil, into which put two moist dried figs, each split in two; let it boil a quarter of an hour, then have ready the peel of a lemon, taken off rather thickly, and the half of the lemon cut in thin slices; throw them into the stewpan, and boil two minutes longer; pour it into the jug, which cover closely with paper until cold, then pass it through a sieve: add a teaspoonful of honey, and it is ready for use.
Modern Redaction
Ingredients
1l water
2 semi-dried figs, halved
thickly-pared peel of 1 lemon
1/2 lemon, thinly sliced
1 tsp runny honey
Method:
Combine the water and figs in a large pan. Bring to a boil and continue boiling for 15 minutes. Now add the lemon zest and sliced lemon. Continue boiling for 2 minutes more then take off the heat.
Pour the mixture into a jug and cover with clingfilm (plastic wrap) then set aside to cool completely. When the mixture is cold, pass through a fine-meshed sieve. Stir in the honey to sweeten and serve.
